Currents; PLATES OLD AND NEW -- One Artist's Porcelain Period

By JULIE V. IOVINE

Published: April 30, 1998

Izhar Patkin must have had a modern bride in mind when he conceived his everyday service made of plates reglazed with Roman-nosed cops and big-haired geishas. Malo, the Italian luxury knitwear company, commissioned the service from Mr. Patkin, a New York artist, to accompany the introduction of Malo's second home line (cashmere-covered hot-water bottle, $256).

Mr. Patkin's installation at Malo's showroom in Milan consisted of 365 mismatched plates, which he bought at a Vermont flea market. His images, he said, dealt with husbands, their mistresses, wives, their lovers and the accouterments of their affairs. ''It's my reflection on modern family values,'' he said.

Calling 1998 his ''year of porcelain,'' Mr. Patkin will also have a show of his drawings that meditate on an 18th-century Prussian law requiring Jews to buy low-quality but expensive porcelain. It will open at the Holly Solomon Gallery on Saturday. All the plates for Malo will be sold at a raffle on Nov. 19 in New York at a charity benefit. Information from Malo at (212) 753-7015, ext. 229. JULIE V. IOVINE